narrate

[nar-eyt, na-reyt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR narrate ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), nar·rat·ed, nar·rat·ing.

to give an account or tell the story of (events, experiences, etc.).

to add a spoken commentary to (a film, television program, etc.): to narrate a slide show.

verb (used without object), nar·rat·ed, nar·rat·ing.

to relate or recount events, experiences, etc., in speech or writing.

Origin of narrate

1650–60; < Latin narrātus (past participle of narrāre to relate, tell, say), equivalent to nār(us) knowing, acquainted with (variant of gnārus; see cognition) + -ātus -ate¹

Related formsnar·rat·a·ble, adjectivenar·ra·tor, nar·rat·er

[nar-ey-ter, na-rey-, nar-uh-] /ˈnær eɪ tər, næˈreɪ-, ˈnær ə-/, nounmis·nar·rate, verb, mis·nar·rat·ed, mis·nar·rat·ing.un·nar·rat·a·ble, adjectiveun·nar·rat·ed, adjectivewell-nar·rat·ed, adjective

Synonyms for narrate

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR narrate ON THESAURUS.COM

1. detail, recite.

Synonym study

1. See describe.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for narrate

recite, portray, depict, chronicle, rehearse, unfold, recount, disclose, reveal, picture, repeat, delineate, characterize, expatiate, relate, enumerate, state, proclaim, paint, discourse

Examples from the Web for narrate

Contemporary Examples of narrate

Eventually, Washington learned to narrate his way through his demons.
NPR’s Smooth-Talking Millennial Whisperer
Batya Ungar-Sargon
October 7, 2014
It is to examine, narrate and let others speak for themselves.
Film Review: Documentary Explores Israeli Attitudes to the Palestinian Nakba
Lisa Goldman
November 27, 2013
Your voice is so distinctive, and you do narrate a lot of documentaries now.
Morgan Freeman Says WTF to GOP, Dishes on ‘Last Vegas,’ ‘12 Years a Slave,’ and Batfleck
Marlow Stern
October 23, 2013
That is why I felt it was important to narrate a short documentary video produced by the Center for American Progress.
Winthrop Roosevelt on the Oil Boom that Threatens His Great-Great-Grandfather’s Legacy
Winthrop Roosevelt
April 2, 2013
Why is she willing to narrate from the perspective of a Filipina caregiver and not, say, a Palestinian?
What's 'Legitimate' Israeli Fiction?
Sigal Samuel
March 29, 2013

Historical Examples of narrate

Let me narrate a fact interesting alike to the naturalist and meteorologist.
In the Heart of Vosges
Matilda Betham-Edwards
Virginia and Sing were compelled to narrate the adventure of the afternoon a dozen times.
The Monster Men
Edgar Rice Burroughs
But I must refrain, for my business is to narrate, not to speculate.
Wilfrid Cumbermede
George MacDonald
We will not narrate what took place in the chamber of the Princess.
Beauty and The Beast, and Tales From Home
Bayard Taylor
The origin of these and the like stories is to be found in the tale which I am about to narrate.
Statesman
Plato

British Dictionary definitions for narrate

narrate

verb

to tell (a story); relate

to speak in accompaniment of (a film, television programme, etc)

Derived Formsnarratable, adjective

Word Origin for narrate

C17: from Latin narrāre to recount, from gnārus knowing

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for narrate

1748, back-formation from narration or else from Latin narratus, past participle of narrare "to tell, relate, recount" (see narration). "Richardson and Johnson call it Scottish" [OED], a stigma which kept it from general use until 19c. A few mid-17c. instances are traceable to Spanish narrar. Related: Narrated; narrating.